6 road-trip worthy podcasts to binge this spring season

We all love a big, loud playlist during road trips; belting out some ABBA or Bob Marley without caring what anyone thinks of your admittedly shaky vocals. But sometimes you want that four hour drive to teach you something, make you laugh, or leave you gasping at grisly details. A journey through the countryside is the perfect time to switch on your favourite podcasts and watch the trip fly by in no time at all. Here’s what we’re listening to this spring.

Hamish and Andy

Anyone growing up in Australia in the last 20 years will know of our national treasure comedy duo. Switching from the world of radio to a weekly podcast in 2020, Hamish and Andy still bring all the laughs, prank calls and hijinks you remember from the drive home from school in the naughties. Their podcast is a guaranteed good time, and if you’ve managed to get through all 200 episodes, their entire radio backlog is available online, which would probably take you a few hundred laps of Australia to get through.

Off Menu

This podcast is ideal for almost any road trip. Relaxing, funny and easy to listen to, hosts James Acaster and Ed Gamble interview a wide array of celebrities and ask them what their dream menu is. Expect surprise visits from a genie, lengthy stories on some of the best restaurants around the world, and lots and lots of laugh breaks. James and Ed bring some of the biggest names in the entertainment industries onto the show, think Florence Pugh, Tim Minchin and Lily Allen to name a few. Make sure you’ve got some lunch breaks lined up, because this one will get the stomach rumbling.

Criminal

A podcast list could never be complete without at least a bit of true crime sprinkled in there. Criminal is one of our faves as you don’t have to commit to a 10 part series to get the full picture. Host Phoebe Judge picks one crime each episode and delves in deep, interviewing people connected to the incident and working through the complexities surrounding it. There’s something for everyone here, from the gruesome to the bizarre, the unbelievable to the misunderstood. A great one to chuck on if you want a quick crime hit.

The Habitat

This one is for all the science geeks, or anyone who idly wonders what a human expedition to Mars would look like. The 7 part series sees a group of volunteers spend a year in a remote, simulated environment to see how a group of astronauts would handle the pressures of continued isolation. It’s a fascinating listen; part reality show, part science fiction. At 7 episodes it’s perfect to binge over one long drive or several shorter ones. Spend the night stargazing out the side of your van to spot the Red Planet.

How stuff works

Have you ever spent a road trip asking the person next to you a series of increasingly bizarre and inane questions? What exactly happened with Jack the Ripper? Why does music make me cry sometimes? How does ketchup work? If this is you, you’re in luck. No longer do you have to pester your road trip buddies, How stuff works picks a different theme each episode and dives deep into the particulars of that subject. Sure to fill you with an endless repository of random facts to break the ice at your next party.

No such thing as a fish

An absolute gem from our friends in the UK, No such thing as a fish sees four writers from the hit TV show ‘QI’ discuss one thing they’ve each learned this week. Blending humour with education, this show will teach you new things you’ve never thought about before while leaving you in stitches. If you get as hooked as we have on this show, there’s over 450 episodes released so far, and with 4 facts per episode, that comes out to 1800 new facts to learn. Return from your holiday as the king or queen of trivia.